Today’s show is a live recording of a mindfulness talk I gave October 27th, 2017 in my hometown, Aspen Colorado. The event was recorded at Aspen Shakti, the day before I led a meditation at the Lead With Love festival. The Shakti talk was arguably the most intimate and vulnerable public presentation I've ever given. It was a considerable act of courage just to show up and be as open-hearted as I was, but even more so to follow through with releasing it as a podcast episode. I sat on this recording for a couple of months, not sure if I was ready to publish such a brutally personal presentation. I bared my soul. I talked about my past as a criminal, drug dealer, drug addict, and many of my most profound and most personal struggles and insecurities. I even spoke about my spirituality- my relationship with GOD. I cried. Twice. I mean, who in their right mind records that, then puts it out into cyberspace? Well, I guess I do if it serves a higher purpose. And the purpose was, is, and always will be to help others overcome the challenges we all face by sharing how I'm overcoming mine.

As I was reflecting on the passing year, and my most valuable lessons, it suddenly occurred to me what my single most impactful discovery has been: The immense power of keeping it real and giving zero f**ks. That's the moment I knew I owed it to myself to go ahead and publish this episode, come what may.

This year, I have found to my surprise that the more authentic, vulnerable, and honest I am- the more intensely people resonate with my message. So if I want to make a meaningful contribution to society, I must be willing to sacrifice my pride, and just bring the truth to every situation I find myself in. Even if that situation is a very public talk or podcast episode.

It's been such a massive internal revelation to find that after a lifetime of being afraid to allow myself to be seen and to be vulnerable publicly and privately, that those fears were unnecessary and illogical. They were in fact, phantoms. It turns out that it's perfectly safe to be seen, to be known. It's become so clear to me that the more open and honest I can be, the more significant the positive impact I can have in the world. A simple concept, but for me, this has been a genuinely liberating year, having experienced this truth at depth.

So that's what this Bootleg Broadcast is all about: Surrendering to your highest potential and creating a space for others to feel free enough to do the same. The net result of all of this is real intimacy and unconditional love. And that's what we're all looking for in the end, isn't it?

As I wrap up 2017 and set my goals for 2018, I've taken some time to reflect and to apply gratitude for all the gifts I received via this podcast.

Here's a brief recap of The Life Stylist Podcast 2017:

The show hit 1 million downloads! That was the goal I set in 2016, and thanks to listeners like you we made it! We even cracked the iTunes top 200, ranking at 118 at our highest point. That's out of tens of thousands of other podcasts. So huge for a brand-new show! I’m also really stoked to have the podcast hosted on Spotify, which was another goal this year.

Now, on to the 2018 podcast goals:

To hit 5 million downloads, and to continue to improve the production quality of the show and the magnitude of future guests.

Want to help me to achieve my goals for the show in 2018?

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